Oh no! Turf toe!

May 24, 2013 3:28 PM

I'm a serious distance runner and was just diagnosed with turf toe. Its been a nuisance for 2 weeks. Now what?

oh....and I'm running a half marathon on Sunday. I am looking forward to this race, although it wasn't on my racing schedule. Please don't berate me for realllly wanting to run this race. I'm just glad it's not broken!

I'm going to try KT taping it (have never tried KT tape in my 16 years of running and 25 marathons) with a few methods I found. My doctor gave me nabumetone for the inflammation. I don't want to skip this race and am totally willing to back it off and turn it into a fun run, because I'm training for some much crazier things in the next month (my 4th half ironman and another marathon!) I have an appointment with my podiatrist this week.

Have you ran through a turf toe injury? Tell me about it! What else do I need to know about turf toe?

Or KT tape? Does it work or is it woo?

posted by floweredfish to Health & Fitness (4 answers total)

I have no idea, myself, but I have a friend who almost certainly does. He's an anatomist/physiologist who's written a book about running and has a blog called Runblogger. Up at the top of the blog's home page is a "contact me" tab. I bet he could give some good advice.
posted by Quizicalcoatl at 4:27 PM on May 24, 2013

I suffer this and the most exercise I get on my feet is just walking; it's so bad, I can't even use a treadmill. Sorry for you. In my case, I use two types of inserts in my shoes: (1) steel turf-toe inserts (basically a steel plate that keeps the toe from bending) and (2) custom orthotics to provide arch support. These do OK for my non-athletic lifestyle. I certainly recommend you get advice from a real foot doctor. Surgeries exist to treat at least some of the causes of this miserable condition.
posted by JimInLoganSquare at 7:02 PM on May 24, 2013

If you can figure out some way to voodoo floss (and another ankle treatment) the toe joint it'll flush out the worst of the inflammation. It'll do a shitload more than the KT tape, I'll guarantee you that.
posted by Kandarp Von Bontee at 11:05 PM on May 24, 2013 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: Thanks all. I ended up running and did a 1:49 for the half. I actually taped it with foam tape rather than sports tape. I taped around my big toe three times, then two pieces from my big toe to heel along the bottom/arch of my foot. Then two more pieces from my big toe joint across my foot to my little toe joint and around the foot. It held nicely! After the race it was ice and anti inflammatories and of course, my upcoming doctors visit. Just thought I'd respond in case anyone else is ever face with a similar predicament and consults AskMe. :)
posted by floweredfish at 4:14 PM on May 27, 2013